Thameslink season ticket holders can claim compensation for timetable disruption

Thameslink season ticket holders are being invited to claim for extra compensation for disruption suffered after a new timetable was introduced in May.

Govia Thameslink Railway has already contacted 63,000 passengers for whom it has postal and email addresses.

Now other season ticket holders, who have not yet been contacted by GTR, can visit the dedicated website to see if they qualify and make a claim.

Qualifying passengers will need to have held a season ticket for travel from the most affected stations between May 20 and July 28 and will receive money back based on the equivalent cost of between one to four weeks’ rail travel.

As previously announced, the scheme will be opened in a later phase to regular travellers, such as part-time workers, who do not have a season ticket. Passengers who have made a minimum of three days’ return travel in any week will qualify for a refund.

Passengers without season tickets have been advised to retain any tickets, receipts or other proof of travel where possible to support an application.

The company says the reliability and frequency of Thameslink services have both improved since May, with more than eight out of ten trains arriving on time, and 200 extra services in operation.

Patrick Verwer, chief executive officer at GTR, said: “We are sorry for the disruption caused by the May timetable change and would urge affected season ticket holders who haven’t already heard from us to claim through our compensation website.

“We have turned a corner in terms of performance and services are now more punctual.”